playlist

noun

play·​list ˈplā-ˌlist How to pronounce playlist (audio)
: a list of recordings to be played on the air by a radio station
also : a similar list used for organizing a personal digital music collection

Examples of playlist in a Sentence

Most of the city's DJs have added the song to their playlists.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Kancey curated playlists for the streaming music company Spotify, but that changed in 2023 when his father, Musaddiq Muhammad, decided to expand an Overtown business, House of Wings, to Los Angeles. — Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 16 Oct. 2026 There is no option to simply block labeled AI tracks from appearing in your playlists. — Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 15 Oct. 2026 These appear on profiles rather than on individual tracks, but individual songs are harder to discover because they’re not included in recommendations or in Spotify’s editorial playlists. — James Peckham, PC Magazine, 15 Oct. 2026 The archive is free to access, and its interactive playlist feature lets listeners assemble their own sets from the available recordings. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 14 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for playlist

Word History

First Known Use

1972, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of playlist was in 1972

Rhymes for playlist

See All Rhymes for playlist

Browse Nearby Words

playlet
playlist
play make-believe
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Playlist.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/playlist. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All